Easy Bubble Skirt for 18 Inch Dolls

This cute little bubble skirt with its huge bow couldn't be easier to make for your favorite little girl's American Girl or other 18" doll.  I had this fabric that was sort of crimped.  I had long intended to make it into a curtain for a bathroom that never got re-painted and I decided it would work great to make a skirt that could be worn over the ballerina leotard my daughter already had for her doll.  

I started with a piece of fabric about 12 inches tall by about 13 inches wide.  Measure the waist of your doll to make sure your fabric is long enough and has a couple of inches extra for bunching and seams.  The waist is one of the measurements that will differ between brands of dolls.

Pin the vertical seam of the fabric together inside out so that your fabric is wrong side up.  Sew along this seam leaving about an inch open at each end.

Turn your fabric so the right side is out. Fold the fabric so the bottom edge and top edge line up and the bottom of the skirt is now a bubble.  Your seam should now be hidden on the inside of the skirt. Use a 1.5" to 2" wide ribbon for your waistband.  Because your skirt is right now wider than you need, measure and mark your ribbon for your doll's waist.  Remember to cut enough ribbon so that you have about 6 inches extra at each end for tying your bow.  So if you have a doll with a 11.5" waist, you will need about 23.5" inches of ribbon.  Starting at one of your measurement marks, pin your ribbon wrong side out through both top edges of your skirt, gathering fabric along the way so that both of your ribbon marks meet up with the two edges of the skirt opening. 

Flip your ribbon upright after pinning it to test before you sew and make sure your skirt looks right.  

Sew the edge of the ribbon and the top edge of the skirt (through both layers of fabric) as close to the edge as you can.  This will make the top seam lay more smoothly when you fold your ribbon up the right way.

After sewing, here is the front of the skirt.

And here is the back.  If your ribbon is stiff, you may need to iron it to get it to lay correctly.  I did this with scraps I had from other projects but even if you had to buy the supplies, this skirt would cost you just a couple dollars and took me about 20 minutes to make.  This would actually be a great sewing project for a young girl who wants to learn how to make doll cloths.  What a bargain compared to catalog prices!

Other 18" doll projects:

Purse/Tote

Sleeping Bag